Meta removes language that raised scraping and AI training concerns
A Meta spokesperson insisted that the updated terms did not reflect a change in the way Meta crawls the web.
Meta recently revised its commercial terms of use, stating that the company can utilize any content from a business account's domains, web pages, or URLs for providing, developing, enhancing, researching, training, and maintaining Meta products and services. Legal experts described this provision as "remarkable," as it could potentially allow Meta to scrape websites of publishers with a Meta business account and utilize the content to train their AI models.
Although Meta successfully defended against a high-profile lawsuit alleging copyright infringement last year, similar cases against AI companies, including Meta, persist. However, a Meta spokesperson clarified that the updated terms did not signify a change in Meta's web crawling approach. Following the removal of the provision, The Verge reported that the company stated they had heard the concerns and clarified that the crawling terms only applied to their ads and business products, and this clarification was explicitly added to the terms themselves.
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